Loose Ends
by fablewriter
Summary: I quickly wrote up this brief alternate ending after seeing Superman Returns for perhaps the fourth or fifth time and wondering for the fourth or fifth time why they couldn’t have ended it more along these lines.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: Superman is owned by Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Comics and their associates. The works of this story are entirely fictional and creations of the fan fiction author. The writer is receiving no financial gain with this piece.**_

_Author's note: I quickly wrote up this brief alternate ending after seeing Superman Returns for perhaps the fourth or fifth time and wondering (for the fourth or fifth time) why they couldn't have ended it more along these lines. But that's why we have fan fiction, right? I'm working on a couple more chapters, so let me know if you like this, and I'll post the sequels_.

Loose Ends

Clark hovered in the cool night air just outside his sleeping son's window.

_My Son_. Once again he felt a rush from the thrill and wonder of those words. His recovery had been nearly complete when Lois and Jason had come to his hospital room. He had been dreamily aware of their presence, but still too weak to respond. Time itself had stood still as he'd listened to Lois's whispered confession. As soon as he was able, he had sped away to see his son; to glory in his existence, to whisper words of love and commitment. A small sound from below got his attention. His lips curved in a wry smile; Lois, in the front yard below, igniting a cigarette lighter. With one more glance at Jason's small sleeping form, Superman silently floated down to stand behind her.

"Lois", he murmured, his voice husky with emotion. Lois whipped around to face him, eyes wide with shock, cigarette and lighter falling forgotten to the ground. Even Clark was caught by surprise when she launched herself at him. He caught her in his arms, instinctively pulling her close. As always, his body reacted instantly, aching for her. She raised her face, wet with tears, to his. Her voice choking, she said, "I thought I'd lost you – I thought…", and then, suddenly recollecting herself, she began to take a step back, only to run into arms made of steel. A myriad of emotions chased themselves across her face – confusion, joy, apprehension, and the trademark Lois Lane irritation. Clark almost laughed out loud at that familiar expression. He wasn't going to let her go this time. Not this time.

His eyes met hers as he said, "I need to thank you".

"Thank me?", she said, her breath hitching just a little at the warmth of his body still pressed against hers.

"For saving my life", he said gravely, "for the gift you've given me", and his eyes misted over once more as his gaze went to up the window of their sleeping son. His eyes returned to hers, searching her face longingly, taking in every curve and plane.

"For still loving me – because I never stopped loving you, Lois. I know things have changed. I know it's complicated, and I don't expect-" At this point he stopped, because Lois had flung her arms around his 

neck and pressed her lips to his in a searing, hot kiss. Their bodies intimately intertwined, he angled his head to better plunder her parted lips, as one large hand moved up to tangle in her hair and the other stroked her curves possessively. Their heated breath mingled together and rose into the cool night air, as, for one brief moment, they hungrily satisfied long pent-up emotions. They could have clung to each other forever, but finally, reluctantly, parted.

Words were unnecessary. They didn't quite know where this new road would lead, but they knew things would never be the same between them. It would be better. They just had to take it one day at a time. There were still many things to work through, not the least of which was revealing his alter ego. But that was for another day.

He rose silently in the air, never taking his eyes off of Lois, her face, softly aglow, turned up to his. "Will I see you around?" she said, gently teasing.

Her heart caught at his sudden smile, so reminiscent of their young son, as he responded, "I'm always around, Lois". As he circled the house once and prepared to leave, he noticed Jason at his window, waving at him wildly.

"Good-night!" Jason called out, his flushed face turned up joyfully to his new hero. Briefly, Superman wondered how much he had overheard. He smiled at his son and waved.

"Good-night!" Jason called out again, as Superman flew off, then whispered softly, "Dad".


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer: Superman is owned by Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Comics and their associates. The works of this story are entirely fictional and creations of the fan fiction author. The writer is receiving no financial gain with this piece.**_

_Author's note: Lois finds out Superman's secret identity, and more._

Revelations

It was three days after Superman had come to Lois - three days after he had learned about his son. That night had been magical. It seemed as if the stars were finally beginning to align in their favor, and that they might actually have a chance at a long-denied relationship.

Richard had realized for some time that Lois could never come close to feeling for him what she felt for Superman. And, because he was a good man, and wanted her to be happy, he had quietly moved his things out of the house, and back into his apartment in Metropolis. Lois felt badly for him, but grateful for his understanding.

Today, at work, she sat at her desk and stared off into an unseen distance, remembering her steamy embrace with Superman from that wonderful night. She shivered at the memory and wondered when she'd see him again. Clark cleared his throat behind her, "Uh, Lois?" She gave herself a mental shake and turned to Clark with a too-bright smile.

"Hi, Clark. What's up? Did you want to talk about that piece the chief wanted us to do together?"

"There's something I needed to talk to you about, but not here, – how about some lunch?"

"Sure, I could eat – lead the way."

Lois followed Clark outside, where he hailed a cab instantly (the man really had a way with cabs), and they settled into the back seat. The monotonous motion of the vehicle left her in danger of sinking into another dreamy reverie and she gave herself another mental shake to clear her head.

"So, where're we going?" Lois asked. She assumed he had an idea for a story and wanted to run it by her, as he'd done so many times before.

"Um, actually, we're going to my place".

Lois sat up slowly. "Your place? Your apartment?" In all the time she'd known Clark, she had never been to his home. They were friendly, worked well together, and respected each other as colleagues, but had never really socialized outside of work. He had given no indication of any romantic interest, and she really hoped that this was not leading in that direction. She'd hate to hurt his feelings. He was such a sweet, likeable dork.

Clark read her reaction perfectly. He had taken such pains to keep a certain distance between them and now he was reaping what he had sown. He sighed.

"It has to do with Superman, Lois, and I thought you'd be interested. It's not something I could show you at work."

Lois relaxed slightly. "Really?"

"Uh, yeah – some background information I dug up – but I wanted to show you first".

Now Lois was truly intrigued. She wanted to learn everything she could about the enigmatic man she loved. They finally arrived at their destination. Clark's apartment was a second floor walk-up in a tidy, older building in a working-class section of town. Clark paid the driver and ushered her into the building. As they walked up the stairs and into Clark's apartment, Lois's practiced eye idly took in all the details: photos of a lovely old farmhouse; an older man and woman standing proudly with a younger Clark; what looked like college graduation photos.

"These your folks, Clark?" Lois said.

"Yeah", he said "my mom and dad".

"They look like nice people. Do you get to see them much?"

"My dad died a few years ago. I don't get to see my mom as much as I'd like, but we stay in touch".

"I'm sorry Clark, I didn't know about your father."

Clark sighed. There was so much she didn't know.

"So, what did you want to show me?"

"Have a seat". He indicated a comfortable sofa nearby.

As she sat, she watched Clark go to one of the larger pictures on the wall, and swing it wide. Lois was surprised to realize it was on hinges, and that a wall safe lay behind it.

"Wow, Clark, this is all very cloak and dagger", she said.

"You have no idea", he muttered under his breath.

When he turned back to her he had some photos in his hand. Only these were not family photos. They were unlike anything she had ever seen, or remembered seeing. It was a cave-like setting – a vast cavern, with huge, lovely crystals jutting out all through-out. It was sparkling, stunning, like a cave full of diamonds.

"This is amazing!" she said. "What is it?"

"It's Superman's Fortress of Solitude", said Clark, sinking down next to her on the sofa. "The crystals are a kind of repository of knowledge from his parents. It was meant to educate and protect him as he grew up on an alien planet – Earth".

"Wow – have you been there?" Lois said. She felt somehow deflated that Superman would take Clark, and not her, to a place so very personal to him.

Clark nodded slowly. Then he said, "So have you".

Lois looked up, startled. "What are you talking about? I think I would have remembered a place like this!"

Clark regarded her steadily. "Not if Superman made you forget. Not if he felt he needed to protect you from the burden of knowing too much-even the knowledge of who he really is."

Lois's wide eyes narrowed suddenly, "Clark, what the hell are you talking about? And how would you know what Superman did or didn't do?"

As her words hung in the air, Clark rose to his feet. He straightened his posture to his full height from the perpetual slouch he'd adopted. One hand raked back his hair from its unfashionably floppy foray onto his forehead. The other hand slowly removed his glasses. He looked at once bigger, more powerful, and the room seemed suddenly smaller. With those few simple changes, his striking good looks became apparent, and he radiated a kind of quiet confidence; a nobility, even. But more than anything, it was the look on his face that told Lois the truth. His eyes didn't dart away from her gaze. There was no nervous, distracting, fidgeting with his glasses. He looked directly into her eyes with all that he was, all that he felt, plainly written on his face, and simply waited.

Lois nearly slipped off the sofa, instantly breathless. "Jesus Christ, it's you!" She looked at him wildly, feeling suddenly lost. Clark dropped to one knee beside her, and possessed himself of her hand.

"Well, not Jesus Christ, but yeah, it's me", he said with a slight smile.

"How could you - How could I not have known?" She suddenly felt shy and desperately tried to think of anything horribly mortifying she may have said or done over the years in front of Clark, at once despising herself for such weak feminine thoughts.

Clark couldn't help smiling at her discomfiture. "I was invisible to you, Lois. I made sure of that. It wasn't that difficult. Why would you ever make the connection between Superman and the office dweeb?" he said ruefully.

"But, you said I knew, once", she said, wrinkling her brow in confusion.

Clark took a deep breath. "Well, yeah, you did. But it turned out very badly. Bad guys took advantage. It made you distraught, ultimately unhappy. So, I did what I thought was for the best at the time. I used my powers to make you forget."

There was a pregnant silence. Clark waited for the inevitable.

"WHAT! How was that your decision to make! What the hell were you thinking? How could you?" The last was said plaintively, bewildered, and felt like a knife twisting in Clark's gut.

So he told her. He told her about their trip to Niagara Falls on assignment. About how she guessed his identity after a chance incident revealed his power to her. He told her how he had given up his powers so that he could be with her, because at the time he thought it was the only way they could have a future; could have children together. He told her about her breakdown when she realized that his sacrifice for her nearly brought about an end to the Earth. That it was at that moment that he'd made the decision to make her forget. He stopped when he saw her tears threatening to overflow, and tried to gather her into his arms.

"Don't touch me! Don't you dare take this away from me again!" she cried.

"I won't, Lois, I promise", he said as he drew her into his lap, and stroked her back soothingly. "First of all, it seems that, after all, I don't need to become a mortal to have children with you," he said, his voice warm with a deep satisfaction. "And, I've come to realize something very important".

"What's that?" she said, sniffling.

He looked steadily into her eyes. "We're stronger together than we are apart." He brushed her lips with his, and then pulled away slightly and captured her eyes once more. "I need you in order to be who I am", he said simply.

Lois gazed tearfully into his earnest eyes. Then her arms crept around him, and she held on for dear life.

Clark closed his eyes and gave up a silent prayer of thanks, as he held her close. It was going to be alright.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Disclaimer: Superman is owned by Warner Bros. Pictures, DC Comics and their associates. The works of this story are entirely fictional and creations of the fan fiction author. The writer is receiving no financial gain with this piece.**_

_Author's note: Chapter 3. Clark and Lois finally get together. Rather steamy. (I'm blushing just thinking about it, but it must be done)._

Coming Home

Lois's mouth was full of sushi. "This is great, Clark!" she exclaimed.

"Well I did promise you lunch, Lois", Clark said with a grin. The last hour and a half had been quite emotional for them both. After learning the bombshell of Clark's true identity, Lois had been full of questions and demands. She'd wanted to know everything, and he had held nothing back. He was finally able to coax her to eat when he told her he had procured one of her favorite foods – sushi.

"It's amazing, though – this looks and tastes exactly like the food from that little sushi place in Kyoto… you know, the one that we went to after that press conference-". She stopped when she saw Clark's sheepish grin, and her mouth formed a surprised "O".

"Yeah, well, luckily they're still in business. I picked it up this morning", said Clark. "It's really not a big deal" he said hastily as she put her plate down and grabbed a drink of water to wash down the sushi she'd nearly choked on in her surprise.

She looked at him incredulously. "Clark, of course it's a big deal. I came here in a cab with my sweet, dorky co-worker, and he's suddenly turned into the-", she stopped suddenly.

"The what?" Clark prompted her, regarding her intently. "Lois?"

Lois complexion turned slightly pink, as she raised her eyes to his and murmured "The love of my life".

Clark said nothing, but within a super-second Lois found herself pulled up from her chair and enveloped in a warm, super hero embrace.

"Um, Clark", Lois said breathlessly as he nuzzled the soft curve of her neck.

"Hmm?" said Clark, as he moved on to press a warm kiss just above the cleft of her breasts. Lois closed her eyes as every rational thought fled from her mind at that moment. At some point she realized he had stopped and she opened her eyes to see his laughing ones looking down at her.

"Did you want to say something, Lois?", he said with a smile.

"I, have to, um, freshen up – where's your-"

"Down the hall, first door on your right", he said, nodding in the appropriate direction. He stepped back to let her go, and she felt suddenly cold and alone.

Several minutes later, when she emerged, she nearly bumped into him. As always, his nearness completely filled her senses.

"Where were we?" he said, a predatory glint in his eye.

Her eyes traveled over his large frame, taking in his broad shoulders and muscular arms. How could she not have noticed the resemblance before? His tie was slightly undone and she glimpsed a flash of red and blue at his neckline. Her mouth went dry.

"You have your Superman outfit on under there?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I usually do. Gotta be prepared for anything that might happen..." Suddenly concerned at her expression, he said, "Does that bother you?"

"Uh, not in the way you might think." Lois ran her tongue over her dry lips and tried to focus her thoughts. "Actually, you have no idea what a huge turn-on it is".

Clark grinned wickedly. "Well, you can see all of it, if you like…but you'll have to undress me."

Lois smiled appreciatively. "I can handle that."

She stepped close to him, close enough to feel his chin brush the top of her hair. Looking up, she ran a finger through the knot of his tie and pulled. The smooth silk slid freely around his neck, and then she pulled it off and cast it on the floor. Next, she carefully unbuttoned his white oxford shirt. When the "S" on his chest was revealed, she couldn't resist running a hand over the letter, over his chest, marveling at its smooth, raised texture. She felt his quick intake of breath and was satisfied. She pulled the shirt out of his waistband, and then tugged on each sleeve, in turn, to free it from his body. It was harder to do than she thought, because it caught against the finely defined muscles of his upper arms. The shirt joined the tie on the floor.

She moved as close to him as possible, and then felt her way with her fingers, to his belt buckle, pressed between their bodies. She noticed that his breathing rate had increased, and so had hers. Next, she fumbled with the button on his waistband, and then the zipper, and then she thought he'd stopped breathing altogether. She looked up into his face to see a furrow of concentration between his brows, and grew concerned.

"Are you OK?" she asked.

His voice strained, Clark said, "Actually, I'm trying to restrain myself from tearing every shred of clothing off your body at this moment, and taking you right here on my hallway floor."

"Oh", Lois breathed, and she swallowed hard at the appealingly erotic picture he had just painted.

He had already toed off his shoes, so she quickly tugged his pants down and waited as he stepped out of them. Then she stepped back to admire him. His Superman outfit had always fitted him like a second skin. Every curve and bulge of muscle could be seen. Every breath he took emphasized his perfectly sculpted chest, straining at the confining fabric. His long, tightly toned legs were spread slightly apart, and his arms were crossed over his chest, above his firm, flat abdomen. He was magnificent. And he was regarding her quizzically, a small smile playing at the corner of his mouth.

"Um, Lois? Can we get to you, now?" And, in what seemed like super-speed, and probably was, he had her standing before him in nothing but her bra and panties. He took her hand and tugged gently, leading her into his bedroom. The room was painted in an unusual, opalescent, color, and Lois realized that it reminded her of the pictures of the crystal cavern she'd just seen.

He drew her down to sit beside him on the soft blue coverlet of his bed, and cradling one of her delicate hands in his large ones, he looked seriously into her eyes. "Lois, before we…go any further, I want to be absolutely positive that you're sure about this – about us. I don't ever want to go backwards with you again. I don't want to scare you away, but, for me, this time, it's a commitment; a life-long commitment. This time, I want it all: marriage, a family, more kids".

He paused to let the effect of his words sink in. "We've been together so long, even when we haven't been 'together'. I know you…" he paused, again, and looked down as he turned her small hand over in his, "better than I know myself."

He chanced a glance into her eyes. "We've already wasted so much time. Can you - do you think you could, love me like that? Live with me like that?"

She used her free hand to tenderly stroke the side of his face, and her voice quavered as she said, "You big dope, that's all I've ever wanted." As the last word left her lips, she found herself enfolded in a crushing embrace.

"You won't regret it", he breathed against her ear, "We'll make it work". And in a super-second he had both of them completely unclothed, warm bodies pressed skin-to-skin in an instant. Lois laughed with pure joy.

"I'd forgotten how fast you can do that" she said. Then she gave him a wicked smile "let's take the rest a little slower".

He let her push him back onto the bed so that she straddled his torso. Her movements against his erection nearly sent him over the edge at once. He put both hands around her slim waist and lifted her as if she were a feather, readjusting her away from dangerous territory. She settled into pressing warm kisses to his heated skin, working her way downward as his heart rate exponentially increased. When her fingers encountered the rough, raised skin near his side, she knew it was the site where the shard of kryptonite had pierced his skin. She paused and examined it carefully.

"Does it hurt?" she asked quietly.

"Not anymore" he reassured her.

"Will it ever heal completely?" she asked.

"I don't know – I think so.", he said uncertainly.

And, for the first time, Lois realized that he didn't have all the answers. How could he? He didn't know everything about himself, about his origins. He didn't even know the limits of his own body. For the first time, she fully understood why he had felt so compelled to try to find his birthplace, Krypton; to try to find some answers. Her heart nearly broke thinking about how alone he must sometimes feel. He would never be alone again. She would make sure of it.

With renewed dedication, she continued her exploration of his body. She pressed a gentle kiss to his side, and went lower. He groaned as she took him into her mouth, and brought him so close to ejaculation that he pulled away quickly, and with a deft maneuver, flipped her so that she was on the bottom and he was on top.

Now the tables were turned. He nuzzled and pressed kisses to first one breast, and then the other. He took an erect, straining nipple into his mouth and suckled until she writhed beneath him in an agony of delight. Then, chuckling, he turned his attention to her other breast. He licked and kissed his way down her softly curved belly, until he reached the moist folds between her legs. He parted them with his fingers and found the small nub of pleasure within. She gave a small breathless cry as he rubbed gently. When he replaced his finger with his mouth, licking and suckling her with abandon, she felt as if her world would soon explode. Just as it began to, her gentle super-warrior rose above her. "Now we fly", he murmured, as, capturing her lips with his, he parted her thighs and plunged into her once, twice, and then a third time.

Together they soared into a shattering release, in a perfect, intimate melding of bodies and minds. Still deep inside her as they descended into clouds of soft satisfaction, Clark gazed down into her face, and saw that what he felt was reflected in her expression; a joyous, exhilarating feeling of finally finding that perfect place where you belong. As if she'd read his mind, her heart swelled with a tenderness that threatened to overcome her. "Welcome home" Lois whispered softly.


End file.
